Laminar flow is the smooth, uninterrupted flow of air over a surface, such as the contour of wings, fuselage, or other parts of an aircraft in flight. Drag reduction through the maintenance of laminar flow over greater chord lengths during the cruise portion of an aircraft's flight can yield to improved fuel efficiency over long distances. However, surface imperfections, especially on the wing leading edge, can lead to transition from laminar to turbulent flow increasing drag and fuel burn.
Flight tests have shown that insect impacts on wing leading edge surfaces can leave residue with critical heights sufficient to disrupt laminar flow and decrease fuel efficiency. Since maintenance of laminar flow is most critical during cruise, insect residue adhesion mitigation is an operational necessity for fuel-efficient configurations.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide an improved method of mitigating insect residue adhesion to a surface that does not add significant weight to increase efficiency of the aircraft.